Leaving the deeply disappointed Song Shuo behind, Xiao Rong returned to his own room. He turned around and shut the door before sitting down at the desk with the official documents in hand.

He wasn’t as calm as he appeared.

…

Looking at it now, Song Shuo really was the future Song Qianzhen—the one with the legendary “seven-aperture exquisite heart.” It was precisely because he understood human nature so well that he could get along with anyone.

This was probably a kind of talent. Even though Song Shuo was still rather naïve, he was extremely sensitive to others’ goodwill or malice.

In contrast, Xiao Rong fell a bit short. He had read that letter twice back then, yet hadn’t noticed Yuan Baifu’s intentions at all. After that day, he had even thought to himself that since Yuan Baifu was so close to Qu Yunmie, he probably wouldn’t do such things again.

Propping his head up with his hand, Xiao Rong let out a heavy sigh.

He had truly been too naive.

Yuan Baifu.

Yuan. Baifu.

He was one of the leaders of the Northern Army’s eventual division; the one who caused the complete fallout between Southern Yong and the King of North. He was the spark that led to the fall of Sun Renluan, He Fu, and the entire Southern Yong.

Even more unforgivable—he was the one who killed Gao Xunzhi.

…

Yuan Baifu seemed to have committed countless wrongs, almost to the point of being irredeemable. Even though Xiao Rong knew all of this, had never taken any action against him. That was because history wasn’t so straightforward. At that time, Qu Yunmie wasn’t as reasonable as he was now—he was caught in a cycle of killing and revenge. The chaos in the frontier left him overwhelmed, the spreading folk songs filled him with anger, and when the army morale fell apart, he grew even more anxious because he had to march against the Xianbei.

Qu Yunmie understood how fatal a decline in morale was. He ordered his subordinates to fix the issue. When they couldn’t, he lost his temper. Yuan Baifu, being the most trusted and frequently used subordinate, often became the target of that fury. Meanwhile, Yuan Baifu had gone to suppress the unrest in Yizhou and stayed there for a long time. No one knew how Southern Yong’s people reached him—maybe Sun Renluan sent someone, or maybe Li Xiuheng played matchmaker. In any case, Yuan Baifu was persuaded by them. He no longer wanted to stay by the volatile Qu Yunmie’s side. He wanted to serve someone else.

Up to this point, Xiao Rong didn’t blame him. After all, he remembered clearly what kind of person Qu Yunmie had been at the beginning. Yuan Baifu’s actions were ruthless, but they didn’t make him a villain. He had simply been trying to improve his own circumstances—who could blame him for that?

What he should never have done—what he absolutely should not have done—was to tie up Gao Xunzhi after he discovered the connection between Yuan Baifu and Southern Yong. Then, in front of the entire army, he cut off Gao Xunzhi’s head to eliminate any doubts or hesitation in the soldiers still sitting on the fence.

…

Initially, Yuan Baifu led his troops to occupy Zhongshan County. It was merely seen as an internal split. That’s why people like Zhang Biezhi didn’t take it seriously. In Zhang’s view, the King and General Yuan often argued, but Yuan was loyal to Qu Yunmie. Even if he declared he would no longer follow him, he’d probably take it back in time. Many shared this view. After so many years, the Northern Army’s relationships were more than just colleagues—they were in-laws and family. One word could change everything. Yuan Baifu understood this well.

That’s why, when Gao Xunzhi came to talk him down, he simply made him a sacrifice. With that act, everyone knew there was no going back. The King would never forgive them now.

The history books said Gao Xunzhi discovered a token sent by Sun Renluan to Yuan Baifu, so Yuan had to kill him. After Song Shuo pointed out the hidden meanings in that letter, Xiao Rong suddenly found the excuse unconvincing.

If Yuan had already decided to betray them, why would he fear the token being discovered? It felt more like an excuse—a cover-up for his treachery.

Though it was hard to say. Yuan Baifu knew Qu Yunmie well. He would’ve known that Gao Xunzhi’s death would drive Qu Yunmie into a rage. Logically, he wouldn’t have done something so stupid. Yet he did. Maybe he truly had a reason to kill Gao Xunzhi—but it wasn’t just because the token had been found.

In any case, Yuan Baifu did something that could never be undone. Though he began fleeing that very night, he didn’t live for long. When Sun Renluan found out he had killed Gao Xunzhi, he knew he was in trouble. Fearing that Qu Yunmie would attack, he decided to eliminate Yuan Baifu—and sent assassins who strangled him while he was completely off guard.

Was it over when Yuan Baifu died? Of course not. To Qu Yunmie, he had lost both a mentor and a father. That vengeance had to be personally repaid. Yuan Baifu’s death didn’t matter—Qu Yunmie would just kill Sun Renluan and destroy Southern Yong to avenge Gao Xunzhi.

So, after quelling the unrest north of the Han River, Qu Yunmie immediately marched south. Southern Yong was already teetering. Yang Zangyi, hearing Qu Yunmie was coming, was furious. Ironically, at that time, it was Sun Renluan who had developed a hatred of fools and wished Yang Zangyi would just kill himself. However, in the official history, it was the opposite—Yang blamed the fall of Yong entirely on Sun Renluan, for bringing in that useless Yuan Baifu. What he thought was a brilliant move ended in disaster.

When Sun Renluan killed Yuan Baifu, he hadn’t consulted Yang. So when Yang Zangyi killed Sun Renluan, he didn’t consult him either. He allied with Sun Shanlu, but unlike what Yang expected, Qu Yunmie’s fury didn’t lessen. He killed all the envoys sent to negotiate—he was determined to repay blood with blood.

Then things grew even worse. Without her brother’s restraint, Sun Shanlu became even more unhinged. The alliance between Empress Dowager Sun and Chancellor Yang broke down. The Empress stirred up trouble in court, and the Young Emperor indulged her. He had his own ideas—he no longer wanted to be controlled. He knew deep down that his mother couldn’t really control him. If he had to listen to someone, he’d rather it be her than Chancellor Yang.

As internal and external crises peaked, Chancellor Yang coughed blood and fell gravely ill. The male companion he had once installed no longer listened to him. That wild pair, devoid of political skill, briefly ruled the land. When Qu Yunmie’s forces reached the capital, they made one mistake after another: inviting Taoist priests to perform rituals, sidelining Sun Renluan’s man Shen Yangrui, and appointing only generals they trusted. They even planned to flee south again if things went wrong—just like Emperor Guangjia had once done.

This domino-like chain of escalating disasters finally ended when Qu Yunmie stormed the palace. TanEr escaped but was killed by officials. No one knew where Sun Shanlu fled—Qu Yunmie killed her. The Emperor tried to flee with a monk’s help but was caught and killed.

Just like the man who fired the first shot at Sarajevo never imagined it would lead to world war, Yuan Baifu never imagined his decision would trigger so many events—opening a new era of chaos in a world already full of it.

Objectively, Yuan Baifu wasn’t the real culprit. He was already dead. Everything afterward was decided by others. That was why Xiao Rong never regarded him as the most dangerous villain—he believed Yuan had merely been pushed forward by a series of events. If things had played out differently, he wouldn’t have done the same.

Then Song Shuo snapped him out of it.

Before Song pointed it out, Xiao Rong hadn’t found anything wrong with Yuan Baifu’s words. After Song said it—everything was wrong.

“The King must control his temper in front of Xiao Rong” → Implied: You must speak properly to him, or he’ll hold a grudge.

“Xiao Rong is a rare scholar who can coexist peacefully with the King” → Implied: Have you forgotten how much you hated scholars? Their arrogance? Their contempt for you? Have you yielded to them now?

“Relationships often don’t break in a moment, but in accumulation” → Implied: Think carefully—how many times have you offended Xiao Rong recently?

“Perhaps the King doesn’t even know when he offended him” → Implied: You already have.

“By the time Xiao Rong leaves, even if the King regrets it, it’ll be too late” → Implied: If you offend him, he’ll leave. Scholars are cold and heartless. When that happens, will you grovel and beg? You probably will—but Xiao Rong won’t come back. He’ll just mock you.

Xiao Rong: “…”

Maybe he was over-interpreting it a bit. Given Qu Yunmie’s personality—if this had been two or three months ago, back in Yanmen County—Qu Yunmie wouldn’t have trusted him this much or followed everything he said. Back then, he was suspicious, arrogant, insecure, and sensitive. Even if he didn’t understand the full meaning of those words, the seed would’ve been planted—that Xiao Rong might betray him, might serve someone else.

Qu Yunmie was the type to give everything—or nothing at all. If that subconscious doubt took root, the consequences were obvious.

Xiao Rong frowned, deeply conflicted.

From the letter, Yuan Baifu probably had issues with him. Maybe he felt threatened. Maybe he hated that Qu Yunmie only listened to a scholar like him. This only proved Yuan Baifu was petty—it didn’t mean he intended to leave the Northern Army.

In fact, it seemed more like he didn’t want to leave. It was precisely because he wanted to stay that he fought for his own interests.

He was petty and cunning… and he reported everything directly to Qu Yunmie, rarely interacting with anyone else.

Xiao Rong pressed his lips together.

*

In the evening, Qu Yunmie returned from the military camp. These days, the army was incredibly busy, and hardly anyone was idle.

He had gone from spending only a few hours there each day to staying the entire day, only hurrying back to the palace at nightfall.

In fact, at this point, there was no real need for him to return at night. There wasn’t anything at the palace that absolutely required his presence. Rushing back after dark and leaving again before dawn was exhausting—he might as well have just stayed overnight at the camp.

Regardless, Qu Yunmie insisted. His excuse was that the scholars might need him to make decisions, and since he had already promised to do his duty as King of the North, naturally, he had to reside in his princely manor.

Gao Xunzhi: “…”

I’m just going to sit here and quietly watch you make things up.

Gao Xunzhi had gone from dazed and headache-ridden, to frustrated and bitterly disappointed, and now he had entered a state of cold indifference. Everything about Qu Yunmie annoyed him—he didn’t want to talk to him or even look at him.

…

As soon as Qu Yunmie entered the room, the first thing he did was change out of his dirty clothes and take a brisk cold shower. He had a naturally high body temperature, and after exercising, he practically gave off steam. Especially in winter, he could literally see wisps of vapor rising from his chest.

After the bath, he let his hair hang wet, not bothering to dry it. With his body heat, it would dry on its own soon enough.

…

 

Edited by: Antiope

 

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